Summerfest 2013: Grouplove Will Not Be the Band to "Get Stuck in a Niche"

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For a few months in the summer of 2010, the world seemed to be an odd and surprising place for the members of Grouplove. The band's self-titled debut EP, released that May, was making waves in the music community, thanks in large part to its catchy singles "Colours" and "Naked Kids." But for five musicians who had been put through the music-industry ringer many times before this, the fact that an off-the-cuff project was bringing them success seemed preposterous.

"It was hard to believe it was happening," recalled singer and guitarist Christian Zucconi of the band's early success. We met with him and his bandmates–singer and keyboardist Hannah Hooper, bassist Sean Gadd, guitarist Andrew Wessen, and drummer Ryan Rabin—backstage before their Summerfest performance. "It was scary in a lot of ways," remembered Hooper. "'Cause it was like 'Dude we're having fun. How is this working?'" Added Rabin, "We just didn't even remotely think that what we were doing was going to end up as anything long-term."

Three years later, the L.A.-based band no longer views the group's success as surreal. It's a logical byproduct of extensive touring and recording a successful full-length debut album, 2011's Never Trust a Happy Song. They've also spent more time with each other than they'd probably prefer. "We all know each other really well now," said Hooper. "We've freaked out on each other, broken down, run away, and beat each other up. We've done it all now. There's nothing to hide. Nowhere to go."

Such closeness as a unit did however make the recording of Grouplove's forthcoming new album, Spreading Rumours (due in September), all the more enjoyable of a process. This January, immediately after getting off tour, the band rented a house together in the Hollywood Hills, which also functioned as their recording studio. The resulting album shows a band pushed in new, enticing directions. At times their earlier material felt flitty and loose, but new album cuts such as the hard-charging "Borderlines And Aliens" and guitar riot "Raspberry" are definitively more concrete. Hooper said it was important that the band continue to evolve. "I feel like a lot of [bands] plateau because they get stuck in a niche. We are not that band. If we have an idea we're gonna try it out."

Playing a plethora of live gigs in recent years has also made Hooper a more confident performer. "I used to get offstage and cry all the time back in the day 'cause I didn't want to be onstage," she admitted. "I didn't get that nobody could tell [if I made a mistake]." Still, she said she's nervous to test out too much of the group's new material quite yet. "I'm so familiar with being in an audience and being so psyched and singing along to some band. And then they're like 'We're gonna play a new one.' You're like 'No! Don't play a new one!' I would definitely go to the bar."